LONDON (AP) – British lawmakers have returned to Parliament from Saturday's Easter break to approve emergency rescue of the country's last factory that will make iron from scratch.
Kiel Prime Minister Starmer summoned a very rare Saturday lawmaker to discuss a bill aimed at closing two giant blast furnaces at the Scunthorpe factory in northern England, the Chinese owner of British Steel.
If the expected bill is passed, Business Secretary Jonathan Reynolds has the authority to direct the company's board of directors and the workforce, and will order the raw materials needed to keep the explosion furnace running.
The decision to introduce emergency laws has added urgency with a recent move by Jingye to cancel orders for iron pellets used in blast furnaces. Without pellets and other raw materials such as caulking coal, the furnace is very difficult once cooled, and very difficult and expensive to restart, potentially need to be closed within a few days.
That means that it is the only country in the group of seven industrial countries that do not have the ability to make their own steel from scratch, not from scrap. This impact is significant for industries such as construction, defense and railroads.
“In this situation, doing nothing was not an option because the clock was falling down,” Reynolds told lawmakers. “We were absorbed from the heat, the legitimate procedures, or respect for the consequences of the rest of the UK explosions, while not standing vaguely.
Reynolds said he acknowledged that the law was a potential argument for future dates and “potential” options rather than transferring ownership of the plant to the state. He also confirmed that the current market value is virtually zero given Steelwork's financial difficulties.
It is unclear what role Jingye, the owner of British Steel since 2020, will play in Steelworks' daily operations once the law is passed. However, if the company and its executives fail to comply with the new law, the company and its executives will face legal sanctions.
The Scunthorpe factory has said it is financially unsustainable due to “challenging market conditions” and increased environmental costs, but has been seeking government rescue for months, but the discussion has not reached a successful outcome. Last month's decision by President Donald Trump to impose a 25% tariff on imported steel was another blow.
At postwar heights, British steelmaking was a world leader, employing over 300,000 people. It currently employs around 40,000 directly, with the industry accounting for just 0.1% of the UK economy.
The remaining UK steelmakers are under pressure to reduce their carbon footprint. Most have moved to electric furnaces that make steel from recycled materials. It left Scunthorpe as the only factory with a blast furnace to make so-called virgin steel.
The last time lawmakers were called back from their rest to sit on Saturday was in the aftermath of an Argentine invasion of the Falkland Islands in the South Atlantic in 1982.
